Inbound marketing is a business strategy that attracts customers by creating valuable content and experiences that are tailored specifically to them. Inbound marketing - when executed most effectively - meets the consumer where they’re at and addresses what questions they want answered. It can be applied in three different ways...
3 Elements of Inbound Marketing:
- Attract: Get the attention and attract the right people with content and conversations most valuable to them. This will help establish you and your business as an industry leader as a resource.
- Engage: Once a connection is established, it’s time for engagement. Think about how you can present ideas, insights, solutions, and tips that directly correlate with the audience’s problem or goals. Take it literally and engage them!
- Delight: Empowering your customers is the key to delighting them. Once you help them solve their problem and reach their goals within their purchase, they will keep coming back to your business for more. The Delight phase can also be executed with surveys, perks, and additional offerings.
Once you understand how to best connect with your audience, inbound marketing becomes more and more clear. Still not convinced it’s the right strategy for your business? Here are some convincing stats to convince you otherwise...
Top 14 Inbound Marketing Stats
Inbound marketing is a variety of things. It encompasses social media, blogging, SEO, email, lead gen, and more all into one strategy. The key to all of these is personalizing your brand’s content to fit the consumer or buyer persona. Whether it’s social media or email marketing, take a deep look at these stats and how they can be implemented and utilized in your business.
SOCIAL MEDIA STATS
Social media can be a great tool to utilize in your inbound marketing strategy.; social platforms grow every day. Facebook currently has over 2 billion active users, Instagram has 400 million active users, and Twitter is a host to 326 million monthly active users who put out about 500 million tweets per day. There’s a huge potential audience for your business to connect with.
When looking at the elements of inbound marketing, social media can be a great tool to attract new and engage with current customers. When you continue to create content tailored to your audiences’ interests, you can create a truly delightful experience.
Marketers from all industries have seemed to find that social media in any form, is a beneficial tool. In fact, 55% of consumers look for information about your business on social media. The reason so many marketers encourage businesses to be active on social media is because of the incredible power it holds to bring in more customers. If your social media is catered to attract consumers, there’s no doubt you’ll get the attention and engagement you’re looking for.
Not all social media content is created equal in inbound marketing. When it comes to creating content, there are types that are more engaging than others. Videos have been found to have more interactions when compared to images. If you're really focusing on attracting and engaging with your audience, using videos in your social media content is key. Videos are more appealing to the eye and offer a source of face-to-face contact with your business. Try to keep any video content around 2 minutes or under, anything over that can become too lengthy and you can lose that initial attraction and interest.
3. 51% of the entire earth’s population is active on social media.
Social media offers the potential for your business to impact those who haven’t had a chance to interact with your brand yet - regardless of geographical location. You can use your brand’s social media to share new insights, ideas, or tips that will really get your customers thinking.
BLOGGING STATS
Another great digital marketing tactic is blogging. Blogging offers the potential to further develop those relationships with your audience by writing content that resonates with them. Consistently creating and publishing content on your website allows your business to answer questions, provide industry insight, and speak to your products and services. That’s not the only benefit; the average company with a blog receives 55% more website visitors.
The more consistent you are with your blog, the more likely you’ll be able to see the real benefits. Sales opportunities for your business increase by just blogging 1-2 times per month alone. Blogs are a great way to engage your audience. Not only do they answer questions your consumers may have, but they are also great for generating leads and sales opportunities. When you incorporate CTAs into your blogs, more people will have the opportunity to engage further with your brand. They also offer a great way to nurture those leads by continuing to write content catered to their needs and interests.
5. Once you write 21-54 blog posts, blog traffic generation increases by up to 30%.
Once you have an established blog and a library of content built up, you’ll likely see an increase in traffic. It’s a great method of attraction! This can also help you and your business standout in your industry because you may be writing on topics that your audience wants to read. If you are writing content that connects and resonates with your consumers, you’re creating a great opportunity for your brand.
SEO STATS
Inbound marketing is finding the right strategies that target the right audience. You’re trying to target and reach the people who need your product or service most - that’s where SEO comes in. This means you’re still going to be using specific keywords and phrases, but they’re going to be more specific to what these customers are looking for.
SEO is a key component in the attract element of inbound marketing. SEO helps your business rank higher when you use specific keywords and phrases in your content.
Organic search via social media means that the consumer looked up something more specific. SEO allows your business to reach those consumers that may be looking for exactly what your business offers, but haven’t found you yet.
When you compare organic search traffic to social media, SEO yields quicker results and can bump up your initial ranking and placement in Google. Implementing paid search and SEO can help your business attract more new customers in places other than search engines. Think of SEO as a boost of traffic to your brand’s content, but it’s your business’s job to continue to engage and delight those consumers.
Research shows most people don’t go past the second page of search results on Google. So, when a consumer starts their search, it’s crucial your business shows up on the first page whenever possible. This allows you to reach your audience to engage, attract, and delight them in various ways.
EMAIL STATS
Email is a great way to reach contacts directly. In general, email is 40% better at converting when compared to other inbound marketing methods. That’s because it’s delivered straight to a consumers’ inbox, so it’s hard for them to miss. Emails can also be personalized to each individual - whether that means incorporating their name, mentioning previous activity, or simply adding engaging emojis. In fact, the top 3 reasons for using personalization in email marketing are improved open rate (82%), higher CTR (75%), and better customer satisfaction (58%).
8. 37% of respondents say email is the most effective channel for customer loyalty and retention
Yes, we’re talking about the recipients of email marketing. Receiving emails from brands makes the consumer feel like they matter to the business. After all, they are getting a personalized email from a brand they recently interacted with or subscribed to. Not to mention it’s a great way to continue to delight your contacts with surveys, perks, and ‘insider’ information!
9. 61% of subscribers or customers would like to receive promotional emails every week
Once they’ve opted in, subscribers and customers want to hear from your business! Receiving targeted (targeted is the keyword, here!) emails as a reminder or delight element can be a very positive method of connection. Sending out a regular newsletter or engaging emails can increase engagement with your customers and increase brand loyalty and awareness.
LEAD GENERATION & CONVERSION STATS
Do you find generating leads and growing traffic to your website difficult? You’re not alone. 61% of marketers say generating traffic and leads is their top challenge. What can be even more difficult than generating those leads, is converting them into sales opportunities for your business. Inbound marketing can help!
10. Companies see a 55% increase in leads from increasing landing pages from 10 to 15
Landing pages can be a great way to increase leads for your business. While landing page styles vary, they all have the same goal: to collect information and produce more leads. Some examples of what great landing pages include are things like:
- A well-written headline
- An image that adds context,
- Compelling copy
- Aa clear call-to-action
- A relevant offer
- Forms or fields to collect information in exchange for offers
You should optimize your landing pages for search with keywords or phrases to make them more accessible to your audience. The key is to create personalized and relevant landing pages that can create more conversion opportunities and increase overall sales.
11. 79% of marketing leads never convert into sales. Lack of nurture is the main cause for this
Inbound marketing can be a great way to nurture leads. Continuing to create content that matters to your audience is an effective way to nurture them over time, and eventually, convert leads. Marketing, without goals and direction, and on its own (without sales) won’t continually nurture and convert leads. Implementing targeted and personalized content can help those leads feel connected and build trust.
BUYER PERSONA STATS
Buyer personas are a true foundational piece in any inbound marketing strategy. Think of your buyer personas as a generalized representation of your ideal customer. The goal is to create content that connects with and engages that ideal customer. Keeping in mind your buyer persona can help you filter content and messaging to more accurately reach and identify topics that resonate with your audience. Inbound marketing is all about talking to the right people, in the right place, and at the right time; you can’t do that without knowing who you’re talking to! Buyer personas make your inbound marketing efforts more effective and efficient.
12. 90% of companies using personas have been able to create a clearer understanding of their buyers
Having a clear understanding of who your buyer is can truly make the difference when it comes to generating more revenue for your business. According to this statistic, companies that use personas have a better overall understanding of who their buyers are and how to best reach them. Buyer personas can make your inbound marketing strategy more impactful to those you’re trying to reach.
As the world is constantly evolving, so are the needs, questions, and wants of the world. That means your buyer personas are always changing! It’s important to keep up with trends and continually update your persona profiles to really be able to leverage them.
14. Using personas made websites 2-5 times more effective and easier to use by targeted users
Not only can using personas help contribute to targeting and lead generation, it can also help tailor your website for maximized effectiveness. When you design your website with the buyer persona in mind, making decisions on elements like layout and navigation become clear. Keep in mind what your personas may be looking for in a website and design your businesses’ website accordingly.
The potential growth for your business with inbound marketing is endless, it just needs to be harnessed! Humans love personalized content and interaction - especially when it happens when and how they like. It makes them feel like they are truly a part of your world. Remember to create content that attracts new customers and once those contacts are intrigued, engage them! Once you have them engaged and keeping up with your business, continue to delight and empower them. That’s the secret to the true potential of inbound marketing. Keep creating those valuable experiences for your customers and see the growth that follows.
